Mancini disputes Keane’s ‘cocky’ Hart claim

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has defended goalkeeper Joe Hart from Roy Keane’s claims that he is “too cocky”.

Former Manchester United and Ireland star Keane, working as an ITV pundit at England’s World Cup qualifier in Poland in midweek, said he felt Hart had been a “little bit too cocky this year”.

His remarks also came in spite of a performance against Borussia Dortmund earlier in the month after which Hart was hailed by some as the best keeper in the world. But the 25-year-old was at fault as Poland equalised to claim a 1-1 draw after the international in Warsaw was rearranged for Wednesday.

“There’s a fine line between confident and cocky, and I think he’s been a little bit too cocky this year,” said the Irishman.

When asked about Keane’s comments, Mancini said: “Every keeper is like this.

“It is important because if not, you should choose another position. If you want to be a keeper you should be cocky.

“Joe is a good guy, he works very hard for this, he wants to improve.

“Everyone can make a mistake, it is impossible to be perfect. Only Mario (Balotelli) is perfect every day!”

Mancini believes this weekend’s opponents West Brom have been playing the best football in England and expects a challenging trip to The Hawthorns.

The Baggies have made an impressive start in the Premier League under new boss Steve Clarke and are just a point behind Mancini’s third-placed champions.

Mancini said: “I should say many compliments to him (Clarke) because he has done a very good job until now.

“In this moment, I think West Bromwich is the team that has played the best football, so tomorrow for us it will be a tough game.”

There have been rumours in recent days suggesting midfield talisman Yaya Toure might want to leave the Etihad Stadium for a new challenge but Mancini was dismissive.

Mancini said: “I am happy Yaya wants a new challenge, I also want a new challenge. I want to win the next game, then the next game in the Champions League. We want to do everything together.”

Clarke, meanwhile, believes City are favourites to retain their title. He said: “They’ve shown that they’re at the same level and it’s up to everyone else to catch up with them.”